Page 6
At this, another of the Illuèn at the table spoke: “We have taken blame for longer than you can possibly conceive, young man.”
But Athalya held a hand to silence him. “There will be no argument here. Never could we take enough blame for what we did. We have spent the centuries since trying to repair the world, but we will never restore Erâth to its former glory; the Mirèn are gone.”
“Is this why the world is ever gray and dark?” Brandyé asked.
“It is in part, but not in whole,” Athalya said, returning her attention to him. “Sadly, there is much more to this tale.”
“What happened after this great war?”
For a thousand years the world became dark,” she said, “and the race of men was nearly extinguished. Invention was forgotten, and the world returned to a state it had not seen for three thousand years. Men lived in caves and starved, and struggled to fight off the creatures that now roamed the land freely.
“For you see, in the wake of such destruction, many creatures of Erâth – men included – became twisted and dark, and the influence of the Duithèn only furthered these changes. Beasts emerged that were not natural, and should not have ever existed; creatures of Darkness.”
“Such as the fierundé,” Brandyé said.
“Indeed – and many others. We retreated and despaired, and watched as the world descended ever further into Darkness. In fact, Erâth would almost certainly have come to and end, if it were not for the Portèn.”
“Are they another extinct race?”
She smiled. “Hardly. If anything, they are the hardiest and longest-living of all the races of Erâth. You may never know them, but you will see their influence all around you: in the plants, in the air, and the land around you. They were indeed harmed greatly during this war, but not destroyed. It took them many centuries to recover their strength, but when they did, the world of Erâth began, ever so slowly, to recover.”
“Then why is there so much Darkness today?”
“There is less than you might think,” she said, “though only in the land of Thaeìn, where we live. If you were to travel to other places – Golgor, Aélûr – you would find a very different kind of world. There, the Portèn have nearly forsaken all life.”
“I hope never to to go there,” he said.
“I hope you never have to,” she replied. “Still – what must happen, will happen.” Brandyé thought these odd words, but she merely continued, “It was with the restoration of the lands that the race of men were preserved. The influence of the Duithèn gradually retreated in some parts of the world, and in three lands – Aélûr, Cathaï and Thaeìn – grew new kingdoms, though their splendor was far less than that of old.
“But with their renewed strength came a renewed arrogance, and men soon forgot the powers of the world, and the Portèn – blaming men for their injuries – abandoned them and retreated. To this day they will not interfere with the race of men, to their continuation or their destruction.”
“How could we forget such important things?” Brandyé said. “Had I known of you, of these races…”
She looked intently at him. “Would your life truly have been any different? The events of your time that have come to pass…you must know that many are not of your doing.”
Brandyé knew she spoke truth, but still could not accept it in his heart; could not accept that Sonora’s death was inevitable, no matter what she, or Ermèn, might say.
“So the race of men continued to regain some strength,” she continued, “and the Portèn retreated. As for us – our shame prevented us from reuniting with the world of men, which may have contributed to the second great fall of the world.”
Brandyé felt a sinking in his stomach, and wondered how much more of this tale he could bear to hear. “There was yet another fall?”
“Indeed. You see, without the influence of the Mirèn, the Portèn or the Illuèn, the Duithèn were able to gain control over much of the world – too much. And in the wake came the Namirèn, whose strength was redoubled with the absence of the Mirèn.”
“The Duithèn I understand,” said Brandyé, “but who are the Namirèn?”
She raised her eyebrows. “You know them well, Brandyé, for they are Death.”
And he shivered, and thought of Schaera.
The Redemption of Erâth 
So. Much. Plot. 😀
Hmm. Is that a good thing?
Yes it is. This is a pretty important chapter, and it’s about time Brandye learned about the other races. I liked it.
Well thank you! I realize there was a lot of mystery surrounding it in the first book, but there really wasn’t an avenue for him to learn about it then; only now, when he meets people who have lived through all of that history.